Wingcopter receives €40 million to scale up delivery drones
The drones will deliver goods urgently, including medicines, while being sustainable
The European Investment Bank (EIB) will provide Wingcopter with a €40 million quasi-equity investment.
The company has developed electrically-powered uncrewed aircraft, which deliver goods as part of several small-scale commercial and humanitarian projects.
One example is a joint project with UNICEF and the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) in Malawi, in which Wingcopter’s drones deliver lifesaving medicines and medical supplies to rural communities and hard-to-reach areas.
The EIB investment is backed by the European Commission’s InvestEU programme under its sustainable infrastructure window. Using electric cargo drones to deliver urgently needed goods can replace carbon-intensive modes of transport such as motorcycles, vans and helicopters, thereby contributing to the transition towards a green and sustainable economy.
The EIB’s investment comes alongside existing funding from a strong international group of investors, including leading European retailer REWE Group, Japanese Fortune 100 conglomerate ITOCHU, Silicon Valley-based Xplorer Capital and Uber co-founder Garrett Camp’s investment arm Expa.
The investor commitments will enable Wingcopter to extend the capabilities of its flagship drone, obtain regulatory approval in key markets and deploy its drones at scale in sustainable last-mile delivery networks to become a global logistics services provider across multiple sectors.
“Backing European cleantech pioneers with global reach like Wingcopter is central to our mission,” said EIB Vice-President Ambroise Fayolle. “Electric cargo drones are an important vertical segment for a future of sustainable transport and logistics. This investment underlines our commitment to supporting entrepreneurs growing and building advanced green technology businesses in the European Union, strengthening our technological competitiveness, creating highly skilled jobs and opening up new markets, while preserving nature.”